


all i want for christmas (is you)

by gilligankane



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:42:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21955330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gilligankane/pseuds/gilligankane
Summary: It’s her dad’s tradition.If we work hard at being good,he would say to her,don’t we deserve one little thing, just for us?
Relationships: Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell
Comments: 18
Kudos: 245





	all i want for christmas (is you)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [carma19](https://archiveofourown.org/users/carma19/gifts).



> **Full disclaimer** : This is a Lifetime-cheesy Christmas fic. I can only say that I make no apologies.
> 
> Written for Merry Pitchmas 2019!

It’s her dad’s tradition. 

_ If we work hard at being good,  _ he would say to her,  _ don’t we deserve one little thing, just for us? _

_ Special things, _ he told her. Like a trip to the zoo when she was eight. Pierced ears in third grade. Tickets to see Spice Girls her senior year of high school. A car her second year of college, a 2003 Lincoln Town Car she named Lucille.

Special things she wouldn’t buy during the year. A year full of giving and one day of receiving in return. 

_ It’s worth it, _ her dad said. 

And she knows exactly what she wants this year. 

-

“So when is your flight landing?”

Chloe eyes the sweater in her hand before she decides against it and tries to focus on Beca’s question. She shoves another pair of jeans into her suitcase before she looks back at her open laptop. 

“11 o’clock.” She checks just to be sure. “Yeah, 11. So I should be able to catch a taxi by, like, 11:30?”

“Catch a taxi?” Beca makes a face. “Dude, I’m picking you up.”

Chloe pauses, her t-shirt in her hands. Well, not her shirt. She’s pretty sure it belonged to Beca. “You’re not picking me up. That’s a waste of money.”

Beca looks away, just over the camera on her laptop, and shrugs one shoulder. “It’s not a big deal.” 

“Of course it is. I might not live in the city anymore, but I remember how much a taxi costs.”

Beca mumbles something that Chloe doesn’t quite catch. 

Chloe buries the t-shirt in her drawer. She can’t risk Beca seeing it and asking for it back. “What?”

Beca clears her throat. “I said, I have a car.”

Chloe looks up, surprised. “You drive?”

“Dude, I-“ Beca huffs. “I know how to drive.”

“Are you sure? Because Aubrey’s golf cart might suggest otherwise...” She laughs when Beca glares at her. “I’ll just get a taxi. You’re already paying for the plane ticket.”

Beca shakes her head again. “No, I mean… The studio.” She rolls her eyes, looking over Chloe’s shoulder again. 

“Beca,” Chloe says slowly, her smile stretching. “Are you fancy enough for car service?”

Beca makes a face. “Dude, even Theo has car service.”

_ Theo _ . Chloe’s mood sours for just a moment before she tries to shake herself out of it. It helps that Beca is still frowning, mouth twisted like she sucked on a lemon in the middle of a body shot. Something flutters in Chloe’s stomach and when she smiles again, she doesn’t have to force it. 

“You’re  _ fancy _ ,” Chloe sings. 

Beca blushes a little. “I’m not.”

“You are.”

“Are not.”

“Are too.”

“Are-“ Beca stops suddenly. She looks past the camera, scowling at something Chloe can’t see. “What?”

Someone says something to her and Beca’s face flushes again. Chloe remembers, too late, that Beca is still at work. The studio looked empty when Beca answered her FaceTime call, but there’s always someone there late at night, getting a few extra hours in. Usually, it’s Beca. 

“It’s Chloe,” Beca says, eyes darting back to the screen. She looks up again. “No. No, you don’t need to say-“

“Hi,” Theo says, dipping into the screen. 

_ Theo _ . Chloe presses to keep the smile on her face, but it flickers when his hand rests on Beca’s shoulder. “Hey,” she says a little too loudly. “You’re at work late.”

Theo rolls his eyes. “I have to if I want to keep up with this one. She’s practically chained to this booth.”

Beca pouts behind him. Chloe can’t help but smile at her. 

“She won’t be for long.” Chloe winks at Theo, regretting it when he grins back. 

“Ah, yes. Girls Day.”

Beca smacks him in the side. “Dude, that’s not what-“

“Girls Day!” Chloe says over her. “Beca, are we having a Girls Weekend?”

Beca rolls her eyes. “That’s  _ not _ what I called it.”

“That’s what it sounded like to me.”

Beca turns to Theo. “You’re not helping.”

Theo smiles back, ignoring Beca’s glare. “Was it supposed to?”

Chloe absently picks up a shirt, unfolding and folding it again. There’s an easiness that Beca and Theo have and it makes Chloe feels like there’s a joke she’s not in on. She thinks maybe she should hang up, finish packing. She needs to find her black and red plaid boots and she needs to make sure she packed her extra phone chargers and-

“Chloe?”

Chloe startles.

“Sorry, sorry.” Beca leans in closer to the screen. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Chloe coughs up a laugh. “You didn’t. I’m totes fine.”

“Totes,” Beca echoes. “Sorry about him. He’s nosy.”

_ Theo _ . Chloe smiles tightly. “He’s your friend.”

“No,” Beca says quickly. “He’s my coworker.  _ You’re  _ my friend.” She looks over her shoulder. “But don’t tell him that. He keeps letting me take hour-long lunches and I don’t want to lose out on that.”

Chloe zips her fingers across her mouth. “Your secret is safe with me.”

Beca smiles at her for a minute. Chloe feels her stomach tighten. She’s not sure how long she’s felt like this but it’s something that summers under the surface every moment of every day. 

She tries, sometimes, to pinpoint the  _ when _ . Maybe it was Beca’s audition. Maybe it was during the riff-off. Maybe it was late nights spend matching music to choreography. Or moving into the Bellas house or movie night or hugging on stage at Worlds or late night Chinese in their apartment or spending nights together on the USO tour.

Maybe it’s just been a hundred little moments, weaving together to make  _ this _ .

“What?” Chloe asks softly. 

Beca shakes her head quickly. “Nothing. I’m just really excited to see you.”

Chloe thinks of a million things to say and only comes up with, “I can’t wait.” 

Beca clears her throat and rolls her eyes again. “Whatever, dude. Just… text me when you get on the plane and when you land. I’ll pick you up,” she stresses. “Got it?”

“Got it,” Chloe agrees. 

“Good.” Beca stifles a yawn. “I need to get one more thing done and then I’m out the door for the weekend.”

“Girls Day.”

“No.” 

“Girrrrls Daaaay,” Chloe sings. 

“Goodbye,” Beca says loudly. 

Chloe sighs softly, her finger hovering over the ‘end call’ button. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“And  _ then _ will you tell me what we’re doing for-“

“Girls Day?”

“ _ The day _ ,” Beca says over her. 

Chloe shakes her head. “You’ll find out. Tomorrow. When I see you.”

Beca sighs, but she’s smiling. “Tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow,” Chloe breathes. 

She ends the call before Beca can get another word in.  _ Tomorrow _ . She gets to see Beca tomorrow. There’s a notebook on her nightstand with a whole list of things they’re going to do over the 12 hours she’s there - it’s all planned out, minute for minute. 

It’s going to be her best Christmas yet. 

-

She wanted more time. It would have been better to have the whole weekend. But she has a huge exam on Monday and Beca is going to be stuck in meetings on Sunday night and so all they have is a day.  _ Less than a day _ , she thinks. She’ll land at 11:00 in the morning and her flight leaves at 1:00am on Sunday. It’s not ideal.

But she’s spent Christmas with Beca for the last six years and even if they weren’t going to wake up together in their tiny apartment, she wasn’t going to miss seeing Beca at Christmas time. 

Not when she knows what she wants this year.

-

“Excuse me,” Chloe says politely as she can. “I think that’s my bag.”

The man who picked up her luggage frowns back at her. “It’s not.”

“It is.” Chloe points to the ID tag on the side, some cheesy Barden Alumni thing Beca got her as a graduation present. 

“I’ve got places to be,” he says, brushing her off. He turns away from her, moving away from the baggage claim area.

A hand reaches past Chloe’s arm and grabs the back of his jacket, tugging. 

“Listen, lady, I-“

“It’s not your bag, dude.” Beca doesn’t let go of his jacket. “So, give it back.”

Chloe forgets about her luggage for a minute. Beca is here. Beca is here and close enough that Chloe can see the way she wets her lip and the color of her eyes and-

“I’m sorry,” the man says, wincing. “I could have sworn this was my bag.” He rolls it back to Chloe. “My bad.”

Chloe barely looks at him. “Hey.”

Beca smiles. “Hey.”

Chloe blinks once, then twice. “Hey!” She grabs for Beca, pulling her into a hug. “Oh my god, you’re here!”

Beca laughs, her hands on Chloe’s back. “ _ You’re  _ the one who’s here. I live here.”

“Part-time,” Chloe reminds her. “You live here part-time.”

“Doesn’t matter. Just let me be right.”

“How about you just be quiet.” Chloe holds Beca closer, her cheek pressed to the side of Beca’s head. She missed this. She missed Beca. “You’re so small.”

“You’re literally only 2 inches taller than I am.” Beca doesn’t wiggle out of her arms, though. She squeezes Chloe tighter, her forehead against Chloe’s shoulder.

Chloe breathes in. Beca smells like the city. Like home.

Beca finally shifts, pulling back a little until her head is tipped up, looking at Chloe’s face. “Hi.”

“Hey,” Chloe breathes. “You’re here.”

Beca doesn’t say anything back this time. She smoothes down the front of Chloe’s peacoat and tucks her hands into the front pockets for a moment before she steps back, out of Chloe’s arms.

Chloe reaches for her, holding on still. “I’m so excited. We’re going to have so much fun!”

Beca starts to pull her through the airport, one hand on Chloe’s luggage. “You won’t even tell me what we’re going to do.” Someone walks between them and Beca stops, reaching back to grab Chloe’s hand. Their fingers lace, palms pressed together, and Chloe nearly misses the next step.

“Because it’s a secret,” Chloe finally says. “And I don’t tell secrets.”

Beca snorts. “Yes, you do. You told me when Stacie started seeing that kid from her gender study class and when Amy broke Emily’s straightener.”

“Those weren’t secrets,” Chloe dismisses. “Everyone knew.”

Beca waves her free hand, the luggage tipping dangerously to one side. It bounces off the edge of another suitcase and Beca lets go of Chloe’s hand to steady it, glaring over her shoulder at the other person walking away. “Rude,” she murmurs.

Chloe’s hand squeezes around the empty space where Beca’s was. 

“You’ll have to tell me eventually,” Beca says. 

“You can find out when we get there.” They break through the crowd towards the pick-up lines. She stays close behind Beca, grabbing the hem of her coat once when a group of tourists tries to cut in between them. They duck and weave through people and she follows Beca, stepping where she steps. At the end of the long line of taxis, Beca tugs her towards a black town car, idling at the curb.

Chloe whistles low. “Damn, Becs.”

“Don’t start,” Beca warns. She scowls back over her shoulder and then at the driver when he gets out of the car and takes her bag. Chloe pokes her in the side and whispers  _ be nice _ when she yanks the door open before the driver can, shuffling Chloe into the backseat.

Beca doesn’t speak again until the driver pulls out of the airport and heads towards the city. “So where do we start?”

Chloe slips her hand into her pocket and touches the list she tucked away. “Lunch.”

Beca’s hand stretches across the leather seat between them, pulling at the stitching.“The hot dog stand on Avenue B?”

Chloe scoffs. “Is there any other hot dog stand?”

“Yeah, dude.” Beca looks amused. “There’s a thousand of them.”

Chloe crosses her arms over her chest and sticks her chin into the air. “Well, that’s the best one.”

Beca laughs. She tugs at Chloe’s arms, trying to pull them apart. “No, it’s just the first one. We’ve never tried any other hot dogs.”

“Why try something else if you’ve already got something perfect?”

Beca looks at her. Chloe wishes she could pull the words out of the air and shove them back where they came from. She worries it going to be like this all weekend; that she’s going to talk so much she’ll have to shove her foot in her mouth just to make herself shut up.

Beca just blinks back at her. “So, hot dogs. Then what?”

Relief floods through Chloe like hot chocolate on a cold day. “I’m not telling.”

“Chloe, come on.” Beca does grab for her hand this time, clutching it tightly. “You’re really not going to tell me anything?”

Chloe shakes her head firmly. “I don’t want to ruin the surprise.”

“Fine.” Beca pouts. “Don’t tell me.”

“I kinda just said I won’t.”

“Whatever.” Beca turns away, looking out the window as the cityscape goes by. 

It’s cold in New York, but not as cold as  Michigan . The car is warm, though, and Chloe pulls at her collar a little. She’s glad she packed her sweaters. Almost everything she has planned for them is outdoors. She’ll have to make sure they stop at Beca’s place, though. She won’t survive the day in just a leather jacket. No matter how cool she thinks she looks. She laughs when Beca doesn’t turn back around. “Don’t pout.”

“I’m not pouting.”

“You’re pouting. See?” Chloe grabs Beca’s chin, turning her head slightly. “Right there.”

“Hands off, Beale.” But Beca grabs her hand and holds onto it for a minute before she lets it go.

Chloe grins, shimmying in her seat. “Hot dogs. Stat.”

-

Beca frowns, almost disappearing into the large scarf Chloe wound around her neck before they caught a taxi over to Wollman Rink in Central Park. “Ice skating.”

“We have to!” Chloe grabs her arm, holding it tight against her chest. “It’s tradition.”

Beca looks at her out of the corner of her eye. “We went once. Last year.”

Chloe doesn’t let that faze her. “So it’s the  _ start _ of a tradition.”

Beca is still watching the skaters. Some of them zip in between everyone, gracefully dodging the clumsy kids and the older people clutching the walls of the rink. “I can’t ice skate.”

“Yes, you can.” Chloe wiggles excitedly. It’s lunchtime and the rink is clearing up as people come off the ice. Chloe watches them, wistful. Little kids holding onto their parent’s hands and teenagers leaning into each other. It reminds her of the first winter she was in New York with Beca, how they’d walk down Broadway looking for stars with their shoulders pressed together and Chloe’s arm through Beca’s. 

“Fine. I don’t  _ want _ to ice skate.”

Chloe pouts. “But it’s on our list.”

“You mean the super secret list you won’t let me look at?” She watches Beca watch the skaters, following a little girl as she pushes off the wall and into the middle of the rink. Chloe winces when the girl trips and lands on her hands and knees. 

“Yes, that list.”

“Well that list is stupid.”

Chloe tugs Beca towards the skate stand. “You just don’t know what’s on it.”

Beca follows after her, feet dragging. “Because you won’t tell me!”

“Because it’s-”

“Secret, yeah.” Beca shakes her head. “But I’m not going out there.”

Chloe comes to a stop, Beca going a step past her. She stares at Beca for a long minute. “But, you have to.”

Beca shakes her head firmly. Her arm twists a little in Chloe’s. “I don’t have to.”

“You promised.” Chloe pushes out her bottom lip, letting it wobble a little. She knows what she’s doing. Beca has told her before, she can’t make that face and not get what she wants.  _ Her secret weapon _ , Beca calls it. It works on her dad and Aubrey and most of her professors. But it especially works on Beca.

Beca presses her lips together tightly before she opens her mouth again. “I didn’t.”

“You took an oath, remember?”

“Not that kind of oath, babe.”

Something ripples in Chloe’s chest. “It’s ice skating. You love ice skating.”

“I love  _ watching _ ice skating. Specifically, I love watching Scott and Tessa.” Beca lifts her chin into the air. 

“Who doesn’t?”

“Chloe, I-”

“But,” Chloe interrupts. “That still doesn’t mean you get to get out of ice skating. It’s the first thing on my list. And don’t call it my super-secret list.”

“It is.” Beca sighs, though, and Chloe knows she’s close to getting what she wants.

Chloe ignores her. “Listen, we had a great time last year.”

“Amy went down and took out an entire Dutch family,” Beca reminds her. “Then we had to drag her back across Central Park.  _ Literally _ drag her. It wasn’t a great time. It was six hours of my life I’ll never get back.”

Chloe tucks her arm into Beca’s and pulls her closer. “But we spent it together, didn’t we?”

“We spent  _ every day _ together.”

Something heavy settles in the pit of Chloe’s stomach. “But we don’t anymore. You’re here-”

“Part-time.”

“And I’m in school,” Chloe says over her. “And we’re not even in the same time zone anymore.”

Beca eyes her skeptically, sucking in her bottom lip. “I know what you’re doing, dude.”

Chloe blinks innocently. “What am I doing?”

“Trying to guilt me into going ice skating with you.”

Chloe starts to smile, shifting so she’s closer to Beca. “Is it working?”

“...Yes.”

“So we’re going?”

Beca sighs heavily. “Fine. Whatever.”

Chloe squeals. “You’re going to love this.”

“I’m going to look like Bambi. Again.” Beca huffs, hair fluttering around her face. 

“He’s definitely cuter than Thumper.”

“Thumper rhymes with Bumper,” Beca says, frowning as she does.

Chloe wrinkles her nose. “I hate Amy for ruining that movie for me.” She tugs on Beca before they can get into another conversation. “Come on.”

Chloe drags Beca to skate stand and waits as the attendant gets their sizes. The benches are clearing out and Chloe grabs one, shivering as she takes off her shoes and laces up the skates instead. She keeps stealing glances at Beca as if she’s going to get up and float away. As if this is a dream and Chloe is really back in her bed, waiting for her alarm to go off so that she can do the same thing she did yesterday, the same thing she’ll do tomorrow. It helps that every time she looks up, Beca is looking back.

She glides onto the ice effortlessly, one foot lifted just slightly. “Do you remember how to do this?”

Beca flails a little behind her, arms windmilling in small circles before she balances on the thin blades. “Dude,  _ no _ .” She tips towards one side and grabs for Chloe, her fingers tight on Chloe’s arm.

Chloe holds Beca up as they drift pass the other skaters. Her fingers grip the pockets of Chloe’s coat, twisting the fabric so it tightens around Chloe’s waist. They shuffle along on the outside of the rink where the skaters are slower, taking their time as Beca gets used to being on the ice again. She remembers last year, when Beca tried on skates for the first time. She  _ had _ looked like Bambi - long legs in all different directions as she tried to stay upright. She’d held on to Chloe, not letting go even when she found her footing.

They got hot chocolate and watched Amy do the mermaid on the ice until she took out a family of tourists, knocking them down one by one.

“See?” Chloe skates back, putting a little bit of space between them without letting go. Beca stays mostly upright. “You’re doing it.”

“Beale,” Beca says through clenched teeth. “Don’t you dare let go of me.”

“But you’re doing it.” Chloe pulls back a little more. “Look at you.”

“I swear to god, Chloe, if you let go of me…”

Chloe carefully peels Beca’s hands off her coat and skates a few feet away. “You’re skating!”

“I’m not.” Beca’s arms go wild again. “Chloe, I’m not. Don’t- Get back here.”

Chloe sticks out her tongue and shakes her head. “No way, Becs. You’re crushing it.”

“I’m going to crush you,” Beca vows.

“No, you’re not.” Chloe pushes off on one leg, slipping past Beca’s outstretched hands. “You love me.”

Beca tries to reach for her again. “I’m going to kill you in your sleep.”

Chloe grins at an older woman skating by them. “She loves me.”

“Chloe,  _ please _ .” Beca stumbles forward and Chloe glides in, catching her. Beca’s arms go around her middle and they tighten instantly, holding on. “Oh, thank god.”

“My name is Chloe.” She winks.

Beca leans into her, her forehead against her shoulder. “Shut up,” she says, the words nearly swallowed by the Christmas music pumping through the speakers on the outside of the rink. “Just don’t let me fall.”

“Yeah,” Chloe says. The word sticks in her throat. “Yeah, I can do that.”

-

There’s a laundry list of things she wants to do: pick out an ornament, shop for the Bellas, sing Christmas carols, pick out a tree for Beca’s part-time apartment, make cookies.

So they stop at Times Square to pick out a tiny glass bulb with a frosted Christmas tree inside and they wait for the seller to hand paint their names on it in sparkling gold letters. They go up and down the avenues picking out cheesy gifts they’ll mail out before Chloe leaves. She makes Beca put on a pair of antlers with bells on them and makes her pose for a picture she immediately sends to the Bellas group chat. She pulls them into the Christmas village nearby and loops her arm through Beca’s. They stop at each vendor just to look. Beca has to move her away from a table that’s selling little wooden cows with Santa hats on. They decide against a tree for now, so she picks through poinsettias instead, trying to find the perfect one for Beca’s desk at work.

She nearly loses Beca in the crowd, so she grabs her by the hand and doesn’t let go.

A part of her almost feels guilty. Beca is so free with her, so open. She relaxes a little more when Chloe’s around. Everyone says so: Aubrey and Amy and Theo and even Beca’s dad one time. She likes to think it might be her superpower, getting Beca to stretch out a little bit and try new things. She uses it when she needs to, like getting Beca to audition or convincing her to go to Worlds or persuading her to rent an apartment together.

She doesn’t want to use it for this.

But this is what she wants for Christmas.

-

She finds Beca where she left her, bouncing on her toes and blowing into her hands outside of the small bodega they stopped at. “Holy shit. How many cookies did you buy?”

“What do you mean?” Chloe looks down at the plastic shopping bag in her hand. “ I got sugar, peanut butter, and chocolate chip.”

Beca narrows her eyes. “Did you remember the ginger?”

Chloe winks. “I am the ginger, babe.”

Beca points a finger at her before her arm falls back to her side. “I walked into that one, didn’t I.”

“You did.” She loops her arm through Beca’s and pulls her back onto the busy sidewalk. “Did you want any other kind of cookie?”

Beca hums a no and sidesteps a man on a bicycle. She glares at the back of his head for a moment and Chloe has to tug on her arm to get her to keep walking before the foot traffic swallows them up. 

“You know, you’re the only person I’ve ever met whose favorite cookie is a gingersnap.”

Beca shrugs a shoulder. “I’ve always been superior to everyone else in your life.”

Something warm ripples through Chloe’s stomach. “Sure you have.”

“You didn’t ask  _ Aubrey _ to move to New York with you.” Beca’s chin lifts into the air, a smug smile on her face. “You asked me.”

“Technically,” Chloe says, dragging out the word. “You asked me. You said- You said,” Chloe says over Beca’s protest. “You said you needed a roommate and New York was too expensive to live on your own.”

Beca nudges her gently. “And  _ you _ said, why don’t you live with me, then?”

Chloe tips her head thoughtfully. “I guess you’re right.”

“I guess I am.” Beca’s hand slides down her arm and stops at Chloe’s hand, lacing their fingers together. “Come on. I want to show you something.”

She pulls Chloe through the crowd, her grip tightening when someone tries to cut between them. The bag of cookie mix hits the side of her leg with each step but she doesn’t notice. All she can think about is Beca’s cold palm against hers and the way Beca keeps looking back over her shoulder to make sure Chloe is still behind her.

This is what her dad was talking about: something special. 

Beca is something special. She always has been. Chloe knew it from the moment she saw Beca at the activities fair. Something about her made Chloe want to know more. She wanted to know who Beca was and what made her tick and at first, she thought it was just a curiosity. She can be intense sometimes. Everyone says so. But Beca never has. She’s always laughed at Chloe and followed along. She’s always been interested in what Chloe has to say and what Chloe wants to do and Chloe has never felt  _ weird _ around Beca. She feels good. She feels whole. She feels like she can do anything with Beca by her side.

They break through the throng of people and Beca pulls up short. Chloe almost crashes into the back of her but stops herself, her hands on Beca’s waist. 

“There,” Beca breathes.

A line of people stretch out in front of them, each holding a small lit candle. They sway side to side in harmony. A man with a cello sits at the end of the line, his bow moving across the strings seamlessly.

“One of the guys at work told me about them,” Beca whispers.

Chloe leans in, her chin on Beca’s shoulder. She can feel Beca’s cheek against her own. 

The carolers are quiet, but Chloe can hear them crystal clear. 

“ _ The first Noel, the angels did say, was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay. _ ”

“Wow,” Chloe breathes.

Beca’s hands fall over Chloe’s and she squeezes gently. 

“ _ In fields where they lay, keeping their sheep, on a cold winter’s night that was so deep _ .”

The candles flicker in the soft breeze that swirls around them. It stretches their shadows long against the darkening sky. Chloe can feel it in the pit of her stomach; this is special. This is one of those moments she’s going to be able to come back to and she’ll feel every second of it: the way the air bites at her cheeks, the weight of Beca’s hands on hers, the feel of Beca pressed against her. She’s going to be able to close her eyes and be exactly in this moment again.

“ _ Noel, noel _ .”

The singers layer the line one on top of the other and Chloe feels the goosebumps prickle across her skin.

“ _ Born is the king of Israel _ .”

Beca shifts a little in her arms, looking at her. Chloe can feel Beca’s eyes on her, but she can’t look away from the carolers.

“Thank you,” Chloe says.

Beca shrugs it off. “It’s whatever, dude. I just thought you’d like it.”

“I  _ love _ it.” Chloe smiles widely. “That was the best thing ever.”

Beca laces her hand in Chloe’s and starts towards the sidewalk again. “It was okay. We could sing it, you know.”

“Oh my  _ god _ , Chloe breathes. “A Bellas Christmas album.”

Beca comes to a stop. “No.”

“We can make it for Bella. Oh my god, Stacie would love it!” She bounces on the tip of her toes. “Wouldn’t that be the tits?”

“The tits,” Beca breathes helplessly. “Oh my god, we’re going to make a Christmas album, aren’t we?”

“After the New Year.” Chloe starts to picture it all on her head. “We can all pitch in and watch Bellas so that Stacie can be there. I mean, we’ll have to wait until Cynthia Rose has some leave and make sure Flo leave her business for a few days. Emily should have a couple of weeks off from grad school, right? Who knows what Ashley and Jessica do, but they shouldn’t have any trouble flying out. Amy is…” She waves a hand. “Amy can come. Aubrey too! It’ll be a Bellas reunion.”

Beca groans. “Chlo, no.”

“Bec,  _ yes _ .” She fishes her phone out of her pocket, tying one-handed. “We’ll just- Oh, Aubrey is in.”

Beca lets her head drop to her chest with a sigh. “Fine.  _ Fine _ . I can ask Theo if we can use the studio for a few hours one day.” She raises her voice over Chloe’s cheer. “We’re going to have to pay for it, though.”

Chloe waves a hand dismissively. “Amy will pay. She’s totally rich.”

Beca rolls her eyes and only tightens her grip on Chloe’s hand. “Come on, Captain. I want cookies.”

“You want a gingersnap.” Chloe winks. “Don’t worry, you can tell me.”

“I’m going to gingersnap you,” Beca grumbles.

Chloe wiggles her eyebrows. “Promises, promises.”

She tried to ignore the fluttering in her stomach when Beca pulls her closer and dives back into the holiday crowd.

-

Beca’s apartment smells like gingersnaps and chocolate and manufactured frosting sugar. It mixes with the Chinese they ordered from their favorite place. Christmas music is playing quietly on the fancy TV Beca owns now and the thermostat is turned up to a temperature they could have never afforded in their one room apartment. It feels like home. She never wants to leave.

Beca rolls towards her, her knees hitting Chloe’s thighs. “Pass the crab rangoons.”

Chloe looks down into the takeout container. “There’s none left.”

“There’s none-” Beca sits up a little. “Did you eat them all?”

Chloe pops a barbeque spare rib into her mouth. “Duh,” she says, chewing.

Beca sags. “Dude.”

Chloe shrugs a shoulder helplessly. “That’s why we buy two orders, isn’t it?”

“I didn’t think you still ate a whole order.”

“Nothing about me has changed.” Chloe reaches over and picks a chicken finger out of the container Beca is holding. 

Beca stops for a moment, eyes narrowed. “But something has.”

Chloe pauses, her stomach tightening. “What do you mean?”

Beca continues to study her. “You’re, I don’t know.” She waves a hand around. “Twitchy.”

“I am not.”

“Yeah, you are. You keep looking around the room like something is going to jump out at you.” Beca pauses, her eyes widening. “Oh my god. Is  _ Amy _ here?”

Chloe snorts. “God, no. Florida, remember? There’s a guy with a boat and-”

Beca lets out a sigh of relief. “Right. I remember.” She picks at a piece of chicken, batting it out of Chloe’s fingers before she scoops it up and pops it into her mouth. She waits until she’s done chewing and then she looks at Chloe again. “But seriously, what’s up with you?”

“Nothing,” Chloe says quickly.

Beca drops her hand to Chloe’s thigh, resting right below the take out container of pork fried rice. “Is it school?”

Chloe knows it’s an out. She can take it. She can laugh and tell Beca that a guy in her class told her how hard this test is going to be and that she’s nervous.

But another voice in her head says that it’s Christmas time and she’s never not gotten herself what she wants. But Beca isn’t a car. She’s not tickets to see One Direction. She’s a living, breathing person and Chloe is in love with her.

_ In love with her. _ It still catches her off guard sometimes, when she least expects it. 

She was so good this year. She worked so hard at her job. She helped save the Bellas from imminent death. She let Beca go out and be the superstar Chloe always knew she would be. She was the best kind of good she could be and her dad always told her: she deserves a little something for herself. 

“No,” she admits slowly. She wets her lips, turning a little towards Beca. She tries to ignore the heart thudding in her chest. “It’s not school.”

Beca seems to notice something. She puts down the container of chicken fingers and turns more, her whole body facing Chloe’s. “What is it?”

Chloe feels a wave of helplessness wash over her. “Beca, it’s Christmas.”

Beca smiles a little crookedly. “Really? I didn’t notice. The Christmas trees lining the fences and the carolers and everything else didn’t give anything away.”

Chloe sucks in a strangled breath. “But, like, Christmas is the best time of the year, isn’t it? Like, the air just feels alive and fresh and the lights are so pretty and-”

Beca leans in. “Chloe, slow down.”

Chloe takes a deep breath, trying to steady her nerve. “Sorry.”

Beca’s hand rubs gently at her thigh. “It’s okay.”

“It’s not.” Chloe reaches out and grabs at Beca’s wrist, pulling her hand off her leg. “Beca, I…”

“Dude, we can drop it.” Beca puts her hands up in the air. “No pressure.”

Chloe takes another breath and this one is better than the last. Her hand starts to tremble and she pushes it down under her thigh. Beca is still looking at her, eyes soft. The next breath is better.

“I love Christmas,” Chloe says. Her voice barely shakes. “My dad has always loved Christmas. Ever since I was little, he’s made such a big deal out of Christmas.”

Beca smiles softly. “That’s why you love it so much. I know. You’ve told me before. I mean, you decorate the week before Thanksgiving.”

“Only because you won’t let me do it after Halloween,” Chloe grumbles.

“Dude, it’s too early!” Beca pushes lightly at her side. “You’re missing a whole holiday.”

Chloe waves her off. “Christmas is the best.” She smiles weakly. “I love it.”

Beca leans against the back of the couch. “I know.”

“My dad has this tradition.” Chloe wants to stop now. She wants to go back. She can always say that what she got herself this year was a trip to New York and that’s it. But Beca is looking at her and her eyes are soft and her smile is even softer. “Every year, he does this thing.”

Beca nods encouragingly. 

“He says that if we’re good all year, if we work hard and we’re nice and we try to help people, then Christmas time is a time we can get something back.” Chloe looks away, just over Beca’s shoulder. “One year, I went to the Mall of America. It was the best.”

Beca snorts. “The Mall of America. Really?”

Chloe swats at Beca’s shoulder. “Don’t judge me.” 

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

Chloe shakes her head.

“So.” Beca reaches out and grasps Chloe’s wrist. “What did you pick this year.”

“You,” Chloe breathes.

Beca smiles for a moment longer before she frowns. “What?”

Chloe tries for a smile and fails. “I picked you.”

“Like, you picked spending the day with me?” Beca asks slowly.

Chloe shifts forward, her hand turning until Beca’s palm is against her own. “No, I mean…” She sighs. “I picked  _ you _ .”

Beca tips her head, confused. “You picked me.”

“Come on, Bec.” Chloe squeezes Beca’s hand lightly. “I’ve been picking you for such a long time. Like, all the time. I always picked you.”

“You picked Chicago,” Beca points out, a few seconds behind.

Chloe frowns for a second. “And that lasted for how long?” 

Beca opens her mouth and closes it again. 

Chloe takes a breath and slides back a little. “It’s okay. I… I should get going. It’s, like, almost time for my flight.” She stands up quickly, an empty takeout container dropping to the floor. “This was so silly. Of course I picked spending the day with you. That’s all.”

Beca stands up too. “Wait, Chloe.”

Chloe backs into the arm of the couch.

Beca holds out her hands. “Wait. Just explain it to me.”

Chloe gives her a faltering smile. “It sounds pretty dumb, actually.”

“Everyone gives themselves a gift for Christmas,” Beca offers. “I got myself the new Klipsch Heritage HP-3 headphones. I’m going to pretend to give them to myself on Christmas morning.”

Chloe laughs brokenly. “You were going to buy them anyway.”

“Yeah, but this way, I’m doing the whole Christmas thing.”

“I know what you’re doing,” Chloe points out. She smiles a little. “You’re not doing a good job.”

“But you’re smiling,” Beca points out. “So it’s kind of working.”

“Is it?” Chloe takes a deep breath.

Beca reaches for Chloe again and Chloe doesn’t back away this time. “Dude, you can’t tell me you want me for Christmas and then leave me.”

Chloe exhales slowly. “I was going to be much smoother than this.”

“It was pretty smooth,” Beca says kindly.

Chloe rolls her eyes. “No, it wasn’t.”

“So you want me for Christmas.” Beca says it casually, like it doesn’t mean everything to Chloe. “Is that what today has been?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Chloe says weakly.

“Oh, no? So taking me skating and walking me through Christmas villages wasn’t, like, a date?”

Chloe withers a little. “I took you skating last year,” she points out.

Beca scoffs. “Chloe.” She tightens her grip a little and Chloe slips a little closer. “Chloe,” Beca breathes.

And she leans in.

Kissing Beca feels like a song. Her hands wrap around Chloe’s waist like a melody and she kisses Chloe slow and sweet and strong. Chloe can feel her heart in her throat. Beca pulls back a little before she leans in again, kissing the corner of Chloe’s mouth. 

“This Christmas thing is real, right?” Beca leans her forehead against Chloe’s. “You’re not just making this up, are you?”

Chloe coughs up a laugh. “Beca.”

“I’m just making sure.”

She kisses Chloe again and pushes in, their legs bumping against the arm of the couch. Chloe gasps as she stumbles a little, holding Beca’s shoulders tighter. She steps on an empty takeout container and she laughs.

-

A couple walks past them, headed for the bank of metal detectors. A group of people come up from the lower level, their bags rolling behind them. 

Beca sighs, holding onto her waist. “It kind of sucks that you have to go.”

Chloe sighs back. “I know.”

“I hate that you waited this long.” 

“I know.” 

“I hate-”

Chloe laughs softly. “I know. I do too.” She wraps her arms around Beca’s shoulders, her hands laced at the back of Beca’s neck. She plays with a short strand of hair there, twisting it around her finger. 

Beca leans her head back into the touch. “What’re you doing New Years Eve?”

Chloe shrugs a shoulder. “Watching  _ When Harry Met Sally _ and eating Chinese food, just like I do every year.”

“Usually, you do that with me every year,” Beca points out. She tucks her hands into the pocket of Chloe’s jacket. 

“Too bad you’re going to be an hour ahead of me.”

Beca pauses, chewing on her bottom lip for a moment. “What if I don’t have to be?”

Chloe smiles. “Beca, you don’t have to-”

“No.” Beca shakes her head. “I want to.”

“You do?” She doesn’t want to get her hopes up, but something ignites in her stomach. 

“You wanted… me, for Christmas.” Beca leans back a little, looking somewhere over Chloe’s shoulder. “What if… what if I want you to be my New Years resolution?”

Chloe laughs. “That was awful.”

Beca nods, cheeks red. “That was terrible. I knew it as soon as it came out of my mouth.”

Chloe clicks her tongue. “I really thought you were cooler than this.”

“Really?” Beca looks hopeful.

Chloe snorts. “No, I didn’t. I know how much of a dork you really are.”

Beca frowns. “I don’t know if I’d say ‘dork’, necessarily, but-”

“You are,” Chloe interrupts.

Beca pouts a little, pushing her bottom lip out. “I want to ring in the New Year with you.” She pulls Chloe a little closer. “I can come to you, too. I’ll fly out the morning of New Years Eve and-”

“Beca, just ask me.” Chloe smiles, her hands drifting from the back of Beca’s neck to her collarbone. 

“Ask you?”

“Ask me to come to New York for New Years Eve.”

Beca pauses. “Will you come to New York for New Years Eve?”

Chloe shrugs a shoulder. “I’ll think about it.”

“You’ll…” Beca blinks a few times. “What?”

Chloe nods. ““I’ll let you know.”

Beca’s shoulders drop and her grip loosens on Chloe’s waist. 

“Beca!” Beca jumps slightly. Chloe winds her hand in the front of Beca’s jacket and tugs lightly. “Yes.”

Beca stares at her for a moment before she smiles wide, shaking her head. “Whatever, Beale.”

“Whatever, Mitchell.”

Beca tips her chin into the air and curls her hand over Chloe’s. “Merry Christmas, Chloe.”

“Merry Christmas, Beca.”

Beca kisses her, slow and sweet and she doesn’t move away when she leans back. 

“ _ I, I, I, I, _ ” starts above them.

“No,” Beca breathes.

Chloe grins. “Yes.”

_ “I don’t want a lot for Christmas _ .”

Beca’s eyes widen in horror. “Please, don’t.”

Chloe leans in and rests her forehead against Beca’s. “ _ There is just one thing I need _ ,” she sings softly.

Beca closes her eyes tightly. “Chloe, please.”

“ _ I don’t care about the presents underneath the Christmas tree. _ ” Chloe brushes her nose against Beca’s. “ _ I just want you for my own. More than you could ever know _ .” She smiles. “Beca.”

“ _ Make my wish come truuue _ ,” Mariah Carey sings.

Chloe kisses the corner of Beca’s mouth. 

“ _ All I want for Christmas… _ ”

“ _ Is you _ ,” Beca finishes softly. She opens her eyes. “That’s it. That’s our movie moment. We should go now.”

“Movies end, you know.”

Beca rolls her eyes. “Then we’ll do a sequel.”

“And a sequel to that?”

“We’ll do as many sequels as you want. But you have to get on that plane, or you’re going to miss your exam.”

Chloe sighs. She knows Beca is right, though. She needs to get back and do some studying and she needs to pack another bag so she can fly out again. “I’ll see you in, like, a week and a half, okay?”

“I’ll pick you up.”

Chloe wiggles her hips a little. “You use car service all the time, don’t you?”

Beca shakes her head. “I’m fancy. There. I admit it.”

“I knew it.” Chloe kisses Beca one more time before she pulls back and steps out of Beca’s hold. “Okay.” She smoothes out the front of Beca’s jacket.

“Now boarding,” the loudspeaker says again. 

Mariah Carey is still crooning above them and the airport is bustling and Chloe thinks, as she looks back at Beca before she steps into the long hallway leading to the plane hatch, that maybe this year is the best Christmas ever.

She got exactly what she wanted this year.


End file.
